Swirling Destinies
by Manifest Destinies
Summary: An AU of Runeterra where people are born with tattoos on their body that slowly grow and develop with their soulmate. Request & reviews are welcome! If requesting, please give an pair & a prompt as well as a good review. Rated T for profanity, possible future mild gore & mild future NSFW themes (will give trigger warnings before hand)
1. Chapter 1

His tattoo was on his chest. It appeared at the age of five, and ever since, it has grown into an complicated tapestry of all sorts things on it. One of the more remarkable things were the symbol of Noxus. Another one was the extreme amount of blades & references to Ionian culture. Garen's best friend, Prince Jarven Lightshield The Fourth, has been teasing him about his tattoo for ages.

"Then what if your Soul Mate is Katerina?" J4 asked slyly, curious on Garen's reaction to the suggestion. They started to have the conversation about their tattoos again while on the training grounds for troops of Demacia, out of earshot of everyone training.

Garen gasped slightly at his suggestion as he picked up his claymore with little difficulties, he swung the claymore around as the captain attempted to warm up for the rigorous training he has prepared for the rest of the Dauntless Vanguard. He mused on that thought mildly while nearly taking off the Prince's nose if Jarven wasn't paying attention. 'Could it be though? The Sinister Blade?' The two have only met on a few occasions outside of the Fields of Justice. And even then, they were vying to see who can kill each other faster, but the battles often times resulted in an stalemate, with neither side gaining an edge without external help.

He shook his head slightly, tousling his already messy brown hair into an bigger mess. "No. It can't be. She's an Noxian, and they are vile and disgusting cheating vermin!" Garen scowled fiercly after thinking about his opinion on Noxians.

Jarven frowned slightly "Have you seen her on the Rift? All of her skills are related to blades, except for that shungpo one. And especially her ultimate, The Death Lotus. It does seem to match up, doesn't it?" He reasoned quickly, feeling rather concerned for his best friend.

But the captain of the Dauntless Vanguard wouldn't hear nothing about it. Jarven shrugged at his answer "If you say so Garen. I'm just honestly worried for you, as your friend, you deserve to find true love after serving your country so finely. We won't mention a single word about this to anyone else. Agreed?" Jarven stated calmly. Garen nodded in reply as the Prince went to call for the Demacian Elite. As Garen was walking away to tend to the Vanguard, he spotted Quinn, the newest member of the Elite flying towards the Prince as her flamboyant, rude, blue eagle carried her with little effort. Her bird let her down as soon as Quinn was in front of the Prince. The girl patted her bird affectionately and allowed him to perch on her thickly gloved arm. The Elite member greeted Jarven in an semi formal manner before handing him a few scrolls of parchment paper. Presumably an scouting report. Demacia's wings nodded respectfully at Jarven's response before Garen gave her a final look, calling out for the members of the Dauntless Vanguard.

* * *

After his training regimen, Garen dismissed the Vanguard, telling them to get some rest. While the members of the Vanguard rushed towards the shower in hopes of getting cleaned up, Garen made his way to the forest edge. His tattoo troubled him greatly, what if the Prince was right? What if the Great Weaver did intend for his soul mate to be Katerina. As Garen mumbled to himself about these things, he took a deep breath of the fresh forest air. Making his way deeper into the forest, he had discovered a small stream that isn't very far from the training grounds. The stream's water was clear and seems to be tinted slightly blue due to the sky. The water wasn't very deep either and smelt very fresh. Garen treaded towards the stream quietly as he could in bulky armor, deciding to ignore his troubling thoughts first, the Vanguard captain leaned forward and cupped his hands so the water may be filled. Garen drank the fresh stream water that was surprisingly cold, even in summer. The water cleared his head as Garen went to drink more. Once the man has drank his fill, Garen felt that he knew the answer to his dilemma. "Very well... I suppose that I shall contact Miss Katerina Du Couteau at the Institute of War and request an meeting? At least, it would answer my questions about this dumb tattoo..." He mumbled quietly, standing up quickly and making his way out of the quiet, but beautiful forest. The stream, unbeknownst to him, was the stream of answers. It flowed to every single city & state of Valoran. The purpose? That... Is not determined yet...

* * *

He sat at his desk in his room at the well established Crownguard Estate. Garen overheard his chirpy sister call out to their parents cheerfully as he heard her footsteps head towards the kitchen. In Garen's rough, calloused hands was a fine blue fountain pen, with gold engravings of the Demacian Crest on it. It was a Snowdown gift from Prince Jarven from a few years back. It was a well crafted piece of writing utility. On his mahogany desk were several sheets of papers related to previous battles & future missions, Garen gave them not even a second look as he pulled out an new sheaf of parchment paper from his drawer.

"How am I suppose to word this thing?" He grumbled to himself with a mild annoyed tone. Garen attempted to draft several versions of a polite meeting letter, but each one sounded off.  
An new voice perked into Garen's earshot. "Hiya brother! Whatcha doing?" Lux chirped happily at Garen, peeking in her head in to his study and waving at him.  
"Oh- N-nothing!" Garen stammered as he shoved his failed letters into his drawer with haste, nearly breaking his fine desk with the brute strength. Lux's eyes narrowed as she gave her brother a small glare before playfully giggling.  
"Oh yeah! Suree its nothingggg- Are you seeing someone?" Lux asked her brother, her expression thoughtful and quiet curious in Garen's eyes. "Don't worry- I won't tell our parents who it is" His sister added on with a second thought, in a much softer tone than before. Garen gave his sister the smallest of shakes, she didn't disappoint him.  
"Oh- Alright... I suppose you'll want some alone time..." The Lady Of Luminosity mumbled rather dejectedly, quietly exiting the room at a swift speed, but not before shooting her brother a final, concerned glance.

* * *

 _AN:  
Hi there! This is my First fanfiction :3c reviews and ratings are appreciated! You may request me! But please write a decent review first, then a prompt + pair would do for me! Although its not guaranteed that i'll choose your request for the next chapter. Also! I'm going to be seeking for a beta reader/proof reader/editor! PM me if interested! Til next time~  
_

 _-Vanessa_


	2. Chapter 2

Syndra sat on the edge of her large, canopy bed, barely clothed in anything but a pale, lavender nightgown. A sweet smell of flowers wafted into her private chambers from the window with a soft cool breeze, making her silvery hair and pale nightgown flutter against the breeze. Syndra inhaled the scent of lavender, a flower that is planted everywhere on her island. The mage pouted, slightly, as she waited for someone.

To pass time, Syndra was tracing an array of pitch black tattoos that went from her left shoulder down to her hips, with a striking contrast to her creamy, quartz skin. The tattoos were styled in a similar fashion of Ionian calligraphy, and they depicted one's life story. The tattoos were already a treasure, but they were drawn in such a way that they resembled shadows, in a sense. A sense of boredom filled Syndra again, having already traced the tattoos she knew by heart. Another small, sea breeze entered her chambers bringing with it the scent of her floral garden and another scent Syndra couldn't quite place her finger on.

The mage whispered to herself as she quietly braided a small lock of her beautiful, silver hair.

"Zed.. why are you always so late," Syndra whispered quietly to herself as her thoughts wandered to her mysterious lover. As she whispered these words, almost as if on cue, a pair of warm, thick arms wrapped themselves around Syndra's waist.

"What do you mean?" A deep voiced chuckle came from behind her. "I'm right on time."

Zed's voice sounded behind her, along with his warm, musky scent that enveloped her. Syndra leaned back by a touch, and felt his broad, sturdy frame, which supported her from behind. A trail of warm, butterfly kisses went up her neck to her jawline. Syndra pulled off Zed's mask with great delicacy. A pair of crimson eyes gazed at her, curiously, as Syndra traced the long, angry scar that ran from the top right side of his face to the left side of his jawline. She studied his face, observing the amount of scars he had accumulated. Just as softly as before, she started to trace the scars that littered the rest of his face. WIth little hassle, she peeled off his shirt which revealed an equally scarred chest. Even though a few new scars piqued her interest, as her favorite pastime was to question him how he acquired the scars, she was more focused on a flash of pale, purple tattoos on the left side of his chest. The tattoos seemed foreign, yet familiar to her. Syndra trembled, slightly, before placing her index finger on the tip of the tattoo, making them burst into swirls and tattoo started to extend itself down his right arm, climbing down until it entwined with her tattoo. A deep, rumbling sound came from his chest as he watched her with amusement. Soft kisses peppered the top of Syndra's head as she continued her soft tracing.

"How's the Order doing?" Syndra asked him idly as she relaxed in his embrace. She knew of most of the current ongoings in the Order, but merely mentioned it for small talk.

Zed laughed in a throaty manner, mildly amused with how many topics they went through in their endless, sleepless nights. They both would stay up late together, often due to disturbing nightmares they encountered when they slept, discussing any topic that one could think of.

"It is going well. We have received a few new recruits, and I am planning to give them training regimen: Base Zero. They seem awfully weak physically, but quite talented in magic." Zed said thoughtfully, tousling Syndra's hair playfully/ She began to pout as she felt her hair being tangled.

"Zed!" Syndra pouted in playful anger, gently pushing him away, she stood up gracefully. The Master of Shadows chuckled at her reaction, instantly swapping himself with a shadow clone.

"Then what would happen if I tickle you?" His breath on Syndra's neck in an instant. Zed's arms were poised to tickle her in an instant.

"No fair!" Syndra pouted angrily at him, turning around to face him. Three purple orbs materialized instantly, hovering above her head, just like they did in the Rift. He grinned at her, not threatened by the orbs, instantly tickling her most sensitive areas. The orbs dissipated quickly, as her giggles broke the silence of the night. Syndra fell to her bed in a writhing mass of limbs, giggling as Zed tickled her more and more.

"S-st-top!" The powerful mage stuttered out between her fits of laughter. This continued for a few more minutes until Zed, finally, stopped. Syndra sputtered out her final giggles before curling up on the bed, defeated by Zed… with tickles. Zed went up to Syndra and put her into his protective embrace, her head resting in his lap. He played with her glossy hair, feeling soothed and reassured by her very presence. As the minutes trickled by, the cool summer breeze, the warmth of the ninja, the soothing presence of what they might call 'soul mate', and fatigue from their little tickle fest all had an effect on Syndra, making her feel drowsy.

"H-hey Zed… why do you always leave once I'm asleep?" Her voice barely audible. He pondered on her remark for a minute. He left for several reasons. One of them was the Order. Another being that if he doesn't leave, he fears he will never be able to leave her.

 _Zed finally replied, "So I may come back once again to see you," he said softly, stroking her forehead with uncannily gentleness.  
_ " _Sleep my princess, and rise to a new day,"_ he whispered softly, starting to sing a traditional, simple, Ionian poem to her. Slowly Syndra fell into the gentle grasp of sleep, allowing the dutiful ninja to take his leave. He clothed himself quickly before donning his mask. He placed a soft, butterfly kiss on Syndra's forehead. With that Zed quietly made his way towards the window. Every particle of him screaming to return to Syndra. Ignoring his body's demands, he slipped out of the window and started falling. The tattoo that resided on his right arm burning with pain, and want filling him. He ignored the feeling and hit the ground, his plan to return to the Order, in an attempt to distance himself from _her_.

* * *

" _When all goes wrong, and my life runs amok,_

 _I think of you, and I get unstuck_

 _In the midst of chaos, you make my heart sing_

 _You're my peace, my happiness, my everything._

* * *

 **AN:**

 **Sorry for the lack of an update. I took too long in writing & editing. Big shout out to HGoltara and Squirtle121 for beta reading my stuff.**

 **Squirtle121 edited this chapter.**

 **Thank you for reading**

 **Vanessa/Destiny**


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